Matthew 1:18-21 (NLT)

FROM TODAY’S READING (12/18/2019)...

MERRY CHRISTMAS

“Infinite, and an infant. Eternal, and yet born of a woman. Almighty, and yet hanging on a woman’s breast. Supporting a universe, and yet needing to be carried in a mother’s arms. King of angels, and yet the reputed son of Joseph. Heir of all things, and yet the carpenter’s despised son.” 

Charles Haddon Spurgeon (1834-1982)

Matthew‬ ‭1:18-21‬ ‭(NLT‬‬) This is how Jesus the Messiah was born. His mother, Mary, was engaged to be married to Joseph. But before the marriage took place, while she was still a virgin, she became pregnant through the power of the Holy Spirit. Joseph, to whom she was engaged, was a righteous man and did not want to disgrace her publicly, so he decided to break the engagement quietly. 

As he considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream. “Joseph, son of David,” the angel said, “do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. For the child within her was conceived by the Holy Spirit. And she will have a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”

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Proverbs 12:25 (NLT)

FROM TODAY’S READING (12/17/2019)...

“Anything that’s human is mentionable, and anything that is mentionable can be more manageable. When we can talk about our feelings, they become less overwhelming, less upsetting, and less scary. The people we trust with that important talk can help us know that we are not alone.”

Mister (Fred) Rogers

 ‭1 Thessalonians‬ ‭5:11‬ ‭(NLT‬‬) So encourage each other and build each other up, just as you are already doing.

Proverbs‬ ‭12:25‬ ‭NLT‬‬) Worry weighs a person down; an encouraging word cheers a person up.

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Proverbs 14:7-8, 15-16 (NLT)

FROM TODAY’S READING (12/16/2019)...

“The difference between stupidity and genius is that genius has its limits.”

Albert Einstein 

Proverbs‬ ‭14:7-8, 15-16‬ ‭(NLT‬‬) Stay away from fools, for you won’t find knowledge on their lips. The prudent understand where they are going, but fools deceive themselves...Only simpletons believe everything they’re told! The prudent carefully consider their steps. The wise are cautious and avoid danger; fools plunge ahead with reckless confidence.”

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Ecclesiastes‬ ‭3:9-13‬ ‭(NLT‬‬)

FROM TODAY’S READING (12/12/2019)...

Note to self...

I don’t have to take this day all at once, but rather, one step, one breath, one moment at a time. I am only one person. Things will get done when they get done.

Unknown origin

Psalms‬ ‭127:2‬ ‭(NLT‬‬) It is useless for you to work so hard from early morning until late at night, anxiously working for food to eat; for God gives rest to his loved ones.

Ecclesiastes‬ ‭3:9-13‬ ‭(NLT‬‬) What do people really get for all their hard work? I have seen the burden God has placed on us all. Yet God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end. So I concluded there is nothing better than to be happy and enjoy ourselves as long as we can. And people should eat and drink and enjoy the fruits of their labor, for these are gifts from God.

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Genesis 1:1 (NLT)...

FROM TODAY’S READING (12/13/2019)...

“The simplest living organism has more moving parts than the most complex machine that man has ever made; over a hundred thousand moving parts in a single cell working thousands of operations every second. The intricate workings of the simplistic living machine are mind-boggling, and the design only gets more exponentially complex from there. As an engineer, as someone who designs things, I stand in awe of life, and I honestly believe it is an insult to the designer to say a machine like that was an accident.”

Kris Langham (mechanical engineer and pastor)

Genesis‬ ‭1:1‬ ‭(NLT‬‬) In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

Colossians‬ ‭1:15-16‬ ‭(NLT‬‬) Christ is the visible image of the invisible God. He existed before anything was created and is supreme over all creation, for through him God created everything in the heavenly realms and on earth. He made the things we can see and the things we can’t see— such as thrones, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities in the unseen world. Everything was created through him and for him.

Hebrews‬ ‭11:3‬ ‭(NLT‬‬) By faith we understand that the entire universe was formed at God’s command, that what we now see did not come from anything that can be seen.

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Matthew 5:17-19 (NLT)...

FROM TODAY’S READING (12/11/2019)...

“Not many people think of the Ten Commandments these days, unless some group is trying to fight a legal battle to place them on public property.

Still, these laws of God, which may be familiar to some only through the Cecil B. De Mille classic film starring Charlton Heston as Moses, contain worthy guidelines that are applicable to today.”

Cal Thomas

Matthew‬ ‭5:17-19‬ ‭(NLT‬‬) Don’t misunderstand why I (Jesus) have come. I did not come to abolish the law of Moses or the writings of the prophets. No, I came to accomplish their purpose. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not even the smallest detail of God’s law will disappear until its purpose is achieved. So if you ignore the least commandment and teach others to do the same, you will be called the least in the Kingdom of Heaven. But anyone who obeys God’s laws and teaches them will be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven.

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Romans‬ ‭6:15-18‬ ‭(NLT‬‬) Well then, since God’s grace has set us free from the law, does that mean we can go on sinning? Of course not! Don’t you realize that you become the slave of whatever you choose to obey? You can be a slave to sin, which leads to death, or you can choose to obey God, which leads to righteous living. Thank God! Once you were slaves of sin, but now you wholeheartedly obey this teaching we have given you. Now you are free from your slavery to sin, and you have become slaves to righteous living.

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2 Peter 1:10-11 (NLT)...

FROM TODAY’S READING (12/10/2019)...

“We not new to this. We true to this!

Diamond & Silk

‭‭2 Peter‬ ‭1:10-11‬ ‭(NLT‬‬) So, dear brothers and sisters, work hard to prove that you really are among those God has called and chosen. Do these things, and you will never fall away. Then God will give you a grand entrance into the eternal Kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

1 John 2:22-24 (NLT) So you must remain faithful to what you have been taught from the beginning. If you do, you will remain in fellowship with the Son and with the Father. And in this fellowship we enjoy the eternal life he promised us.

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